Why Buy Genuine Parts?

Why is it so Important to buy Genuine Manufactured Turbos or Professionally Remanufactured Turbos?

If you find yourself in need of purchasing a new turbocharger, whether due to your current turbo failing or if you are building a vehicle for fast road, track or motorsport use, you will see there’s a huge range of turbochargers currently available. The turbocharger marketplace has grown substantially over the past 5 years making it difficult to know what to buy - you will see a wide price range for a product that may appear to look identical.

The old saying “you get what you pay for" is very true in this instance and here at Owen Developments, as official Distributors for the likes of Xona Rotor, Mitsubishi, Precision Turbo, Turbonetics and TiAL Sport, only deal with the OE (Original Equipment) manufacturers and for very good reason. The turbos supplied or repaired by Owen Developments are only assembled using genuine components. Many counterfeit companies have jumped on the band waggon in recent years and may produce a turbo that looks like the original product but definitely is not.

Typically, they are made from the inferior materials which can’t survive the extreme heat and stresses a turbocharger must endure. The components made by the original turbo manufacturers have strict control over tolerances, machining finishes and burst containment testing, copied parts fail to meet the same criteria. So if you find something for sale on the internet that is £200-£500 or more pounds cheaper than that found from an authorised Distributor, you have to wonder; why is it so cheap? You will not be saving money for very long as fitment of an inferior product will undoubtedly lead to engine failure.

A fake TiAL MVS Wastegate being tested. It only lasted 6,200 cycles (as well as being broken in the box, the valve seat would not install making it useless anyway), a genuine TiAL MVS
would be expected to last at minimum one hundred times as long.

Why should I buy my Turbo from Owen Developments?

Owen Developments has been in business for 30 years, working with turbochargers and has worked with the OE manufacturers for the duration of this time. Having worked with OEMs directly, Owen Developments has been able to learn with them all the technical aspects necessary regarding turbochargers and turbocharging systems, including the need for precise engine management control.

Owen Developments do not just sell a box with a part number on it like some companies, years of experience have gone into knowing exactly what is in the box, how its built, what it’s made from, what application it will suit as well as actually building new, remanufactured, hybrid, fast road and motorsport turbochargers on site. Owen Developments can assist you with technical advice regarding the correct turbo for your application as well as offering the service of inspection and fault finding - it’s all part of the expert service provided to you, the customer.

Finding your Turbocharger's Part Number

There is a huge amount of variation in the turbocharger world; there are many different manufacturers which produce thousands of different turbos, each of which is available with a variety of options. Finding out exactly which turbo you have can be a daunting task but necessary for servicing or replacing a unit as well as identifying a fake. Owen Developments will always be able to advise you faster and more accurately if we know exactly which turbo you have.

The simplest way to identify a turbo (and therefore whether it's genuine) is by its part number which will usually be found on a plaque on the unit. However, almost every manufacturer places the plaque in a different position and presents the information in a different format. With this in mind, here is a simple guide to finding the part number. Armed with just the name of the manufacturer and the part number you would be surprised at how much faster quotes, parts, a rebuild or a replacement unit will arrive!

One final point; if your turbo was bought from Owen Developments, has been rebuilt or serviced here it should have an Owen Developments plaque on it regardless of who manufactured the unit. If you can provide an Owen Developments part number instead of the OEM’s part number the process will be expedited.